Eminem leads this year’s inductions to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as he, alongside artists such as Lionel Richie and Dolly Parton, take their place among a pantheon of pop culture’s greatest musical icons.
Also on the list of entries for this year’s class are Carly Simon, Duran Duran, Eurythmics, and Pat Benatar who have all been voted into the hall in the performance category. Judas Priest and Jimmy Jam & Terry Lewis will be inducted in the Award for Musical Excellence category while Harry Belafonte and Elizabeth Cotten will be honoured with the Early Influence Award.
Eminem, Dolly Parton, Carly Simon, Lionel Richie, and Duran Duran have all been selected as first-time ballot nominees. Benatar and Eurythmics have both appeared on previous ballots and have gotten over the bump to get in the hall.
The Detroit rapper becomes a part of a small contingent of the famous rock-driven awards ceremony as being one of the few representatives of the rap and hip hop world in the hall.
However, over recent years, the establishment has inducted many great names into the hall of fame, including Run DMC, N.W.A., Jay-Z, LL Cool J, Biggie Smalls, Tupac Shakur, Public Enemy, Beastie Boys and pioneers, Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five.
Eminem joined LL Cool J at the hall of fame, performing alongside him at last year’s event. During his acceptance speech, LL suggested that rappers, just as much as rockers, want to be up on the mantle of Rock Hall: “The last thing I’ll say is, rock and roll, hip hop loves you. We borrow your beats. We sample ’em. We turn them into hits. And we know where we came from. We know where things come from….we love and appreciate you,” he concluded.
Watch Eminem perform ‘Rock the Bells’ with LL Cool J in 2021.
